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Inditex SA -- owner of Zara and the world's largest clothing retailer -- has once again posted impressive gains.  It has also announced plans to slow new store launches and focus more on online.

According to the company:

Inditex Group's net sales increased by 15.4% in FY15 (1 February 2015 - 31 January 2016) to €20.90 billion, underpinned by growth in all of the Group's geographic regions. Sales growth in local currencies reached 15%. Net profit was €2.88 billion, up 15% from FY14. Meanwhile EBITDA registered growth of 15% to €4.70 billion. Like-for-like sales growth was 8.5%, on top of 5% growth in FY14, with positive growth in all geographies and across all the formats.

Despite the continuing recession in much of Europe, the slowdown (or worse) in China and other BRIC-like economies, and uneven growth in the United States.

According to Bloomberg:

Since Inditex’s 2001 initial public offering, the retailer has boosted its sales more than sixfold through aggressive expansion of its eight chains. Two-thirds of its 7,000 stores have been opened or revamped in the last three years.

But the company is applying the brakes to more bricks-and-mortar.  Several new stores -- including massive brand-focusing flagship stores -- will continue to open. Others will open for the first time in selected emerging markets.  But the company perceives it has sufficient physical presence in existing markets to support strong online growth. Zara promotes both in-store pick-up and return on its products purchased online.

Zara does not usually report online sales separate from other retail. But on March 9 the company reported, "The Group will complete its online presence in all the European Union markets in April when its online sales platform goes live in Slovenia, Malta and the Baltic States. Meanwhile, the Group is planning to launch in five new markets with physical stores in 2016 (New Zealand, Vietnam, Nicaragua, Paraguay and Aruba)."  This means that across several brands, the company now has customized online platforms operating in 29 national markets.

Inditex is famous for its well-integrated and agile supply chain.  The company was a relative late-comer to online, but the "fast-fashion" functionality of its supply chain is especially well-suited to online consumer preferences.

According to its most recent quarterly report, Inditex has steadily rolled out radio frequency identification technology (RFID) to improve stock management across its store base. At year-end FY2015, this technology was up and running in 1,542 stores in 64 markets and had been fully implemented in 48 of these countries. By the end of 2016, the Group plans to have installed this technology throughout Zara's more than 2,000 stores.